Chapter 644 - 647: Too Shameless
Seeing he couldn’t scare her—and it wasn’t as if he could actually break her legs—Li Ji could only frown at her.
His displeasure was written all over his face.
Hua Manman said, "Instead of me having to sneak away, why don’t you just let me go openly? At least then you’ll know where I am. Don’t you agree?"
Li Ji was so exasperated he let out a laugh.
"Can’t you just stay by my side obediently?"
Hua Manman clasped her hands behind her back, head bowed. She scuffed the tip of her shoe against the ground and said in a low voice,
"I want to stay with you too, but the current situation doesn’t allow for it.
If I stay with you all the time, I’ll just be a useless decoration.
Sometimes, I might even hold you back.
I don’t want that. I want to help you, too."
Li Ji remained silent.
Hua Manman looked up, carefully observing his expression.
"Are you angry?"
’If he’s really angry,’ she thought, ’I’ll give up on the idea of us splitting up. After all, my goal is to help him, not to make him angry.’
Li Ji said, "I’m angry at myself for being so useless. I haven’t been able to give you a stable life, and I’ve dragged you into this life of constant wandering."
Hua Manman quickly said,
"Don’t say that. I think you’re already incredible."
She was telling the truth. For Li Ji to have come this far on his own abilities was already an extraordinary feat.
If he had one failing, it was that the Main God had defined him as a supporting character.
A major villain destined to be a stumbling block on the protagonist’s path, one who had to be eliminated like cannon fodder.
If he hadn’t been branded a supporting character, he wouldn’t have had to endure so many hardships. His life would have been much smoother.
Hua Manman took his hand and looked him in the eye, speaking earnestly.
"We’re husband and wife. A married couple should face adversity together and support one another.
You can’t always be the one protecting me. I have to find a way to pull my own weight, too."
Li Ji’s gaze fell to their clasped hands. He was silent for a long time before speaking again.
"If we split up, I won’t be able to protect you at all times. If you run into danger, I’ll be too far away to help."
Hua Manman thought for a moment, then had an idea. "If I really run into trouble I can’t handle, I’ll have Little Flower send you a message."
Li Ji knew the Little Flower she was referring to was the system.
The system could transform into various animals, like an eagle, for example.
Eagles fly very fast, so delivering a message would be a piece of cake.
Seeing that he seemed to be wavering, Hua Manman quickly added,
"If the situation is too urgent to call for help, I’ll just have Little Flower turn into a big tiger. If anyone dares to bully me, I’ll have Little Flower bite them!"
Li Ji asked, "Is there anything that would allow me to know if you’re safe at all times, no matter where you are?"
Hua Manman immediately thought of a cell phone.
Unfortunately, this world had neither cell phones nor a signal.
She scratched her head. "I’ll go ask Little Flower."
The little cat, Little Flower, was eating a small yellow fish.
The trusted aides had caught it in a nearby river and given one to the cat.
It was eating with great relish when it heard Hua Manman and looked up at her.
Meow~
"You want a device for constant communication? The store does have things like that."
Hua Manman’s heart leaped with joy. Just as she was about to ask more, the system continued,
"But after I defected, the Main God revoked my access to the store. Now I can’t get a single thing out of it."
Hua Manman’s hopes were dashed.
The little cat licked its lips, still wanting more, and said,
"Even though I can’t get into the store, I have another way to help you. On one condition: you have to get me two more fish."
Hua Manman agreed instantly.
She immediately ran to the trusted aides, got two more small yellow fish, and respectfully presented them to the little cat.
Once the little cat had devoured both fish, Hua Manman finally asked,
"So, what’s this method you were talking about?"
The little cat flopped onto the ground, exposing its soft belly and letting out a faint cry.
Mrow~
"Come on, pet me!"
"Isn’t this a bit inappropriate? We’re in the middle of something serious." Though her words were hesitant, Hua Manman’s hand was brutally honest, reaching out to give the little cat’s belly a couple of good rubs.
In the past, no matter how hard Hua Manman pet it, not a single hair ever came off.
But today, a whole bunch of fur came off at once.
Hua Manman stared at the fur in her palm and asked in astonishment,
"You’re shedding? Don’t tell me you’re going bald!"
The little cat retorted irritably, "I’m not a human. Why would I go bald?"
For some reason, Hua Manman felt personally attacked. ’Ouch.’
The little cat swayed its tail and said lazily,
"I may look like a cat right now, but I’m fundamentally just a set of data. If I don’t want to, not a single strand of fur will ever come off."
Hua Manman looked at the fur in her hand. "Then what’s this?"
The little cat explained patiently.
"This is fur that I shed on purpose.
It’s all very closely connected to me.
If this fur were to fall into the Main God’s hands, it could instantly pinpoint my location.
Of course, I trust you wouldn’t do something like that.
You can give this fur to Li Ji.
If you and I are in danger, I will make this fur turn to ash."
Hua Manman’s eyes lit up. "This is great!"
She quickly wrapped the fur in a handkerchief, tucked it inside her robes, then scooped up the little cat and planted a big kiss on its furry forehead.
"You’re the best!"
The little cat froze for a second, then began to struggle frantically.
MEOW MEOW MEOW!
"How dare you, woman! You dare defile this magnificent me?!"
Hua Manman laughed shamelessly. "If you’re so unhappy about it, you can defile me right back."
With that, she even deliberately leaned her face in closer, presenting herself as if she were his for the taking.
This made the little cat howl with rage.
’Shameless! Utterly shameless!’
Seeing the little cat was about to lose its mind, Hua Manman finally put it down.
She ran to find Li Ji, handed him the cat fur, and carefully explained its purpose.
With this fur, Li Ji could know if Manman was safe at all times. He finally relented, agreeing to let her go to Tianjing to retrieve someone.
Of course, Li Ji couldn’t let her go alone.
He specially selected twenty elites from his Personal Guard Team to be responsible for Manman’s safety.
When Yue Niang learned that Manman and the Regent King were going to part ways, she rushed to find Manman.
"I want to go with you."
Hua Manman replied, "I’m going to Tianjing on business this time, and I’ll have to leave as soon as it’s done. I might not be able to look after you."
Yue Niang insisted, "It’s alright. I can take care of myself."
Over the course of their journey, she had gotten to know the Regent King and Duke Zhen, but she was still most comfortable with Manman. If Manman wasn’t around, she wouldn’t know how to act around the Regent King and Duke Zhen.
That was why she wanted to stay with Manman.
Hua Manman said, "Alright then, you can come with me. Once we get to Tianjing, I’ll find a way to arrange an identity for you and set you up with an embroidery shop so you can live a stable life in the Celestial Capital."
Yue Niang replied, "We can talk about all that when the time comes."